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Originally Posted by JLBW
I'm not sure if posting here had anything to do with what is happening in our life right now but we left our LC recently but last night we learned of gossip and are now being quarantined.....for leaving due to sexual abuse that we kept covered except for sharing with a few trusted friends. I guess it's time to make a formal announcement!?
Thankfully we are out but this song came to mind last night and I wanted to share
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JLBW
I'm a professional counselor so I'm not going to get baited into anything that would put me in the public eye. I'm pretty private actually. So I will need to be careful and allow the Lord to lead. But I'm not getting pushed around any more either. You all have been so gracious and kind. The Lord is alive and well in the saints!
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JLBW, you know what you're doing. If you think a formal announcement is appropriate, I trust your judgment. You were assaulted by an elder. You were bullied into silence, now you are being quarantined by gossipmongers ... for what? NOT speaking out?
You might consider writing your statement, that every word be established. First read it to the criminal, and his wife. This is scriptural. Record your meeting, tell them it’s being recorded. If he doesn’t make it right with you and your family, to your satisfaction, take the next step. If you follow Matthew 18:15-17, the next step would be to go and take with you witnesses. Next is "tell it to the church". There is a Witness Lee/LC perpetrated myth out there that "tell it to the church" means "tell it to the elders". Not true. Telling the elders only is an invitation for covering sin...as we have seen ad nauseaum.
"Tell it to the church" means
TELL IT TO THE CHURCH. Tell the faithful. Tell those who could be effected by the sin of others. "The church" is not restricted to a geographical location. If there are two locations effected by the sinning brother, there is no reason they should not be included.
For elders, it's worse:
I Timothy 5:19-21 Do not entertain an accusation against an elder unless it is brought by two or three witnesses. 20 But those elders who are sinning you are to reprove before everyone, so that the others may take warning. 21 I charge you, in the sight of God and Christ Jesus and the elect angels, to keep these instructions without partiality, and to do nothing out of favoritism.
You've already done this. One elder abused you, and another bunch abused you by their sinful cowardice.
The sinning elder should be the one making a formal announcement. That would be a start. It’s his mess to clean up. He is responsible, along with those cowards who covered it up. Don’t make any threats. You don’t need to. If he can’t figure out what he should do, that’s his problem. What you do shouldn’t be contingent on what he does, or doesn’t do. If you give him an ultimatum, he could use it against you. Don't give him or the cowards anything they could use against you.
Just my thoughts...
Nell